First trip to ER

It's time to blog our ER story! Two weeks ago was the first day of daycare/preschool.  I went to my mom's school to help her move into her new classroom. As we were taking a lunch break I got a call from his school. It wasn't his teacher. It was the director. Red flag. She said, "Cade's okay, but he's had an accident."  First thought, "Dang, he wet his pants?" She continued to tell me that after going to the bathroom he was washing his hands, slipped off the stool and hit his head on the sink counter.  She told me they called 9-1-1 just to be safe since it was a head injury. Mom and I rushed to the school and saw two firetrucks and an ambulance. I was feeling pretty calm until then. Ho-lee-hell.

I ran in to see a crowd of firemen/EMTs and a handful of teachers and my little boy in the arms of a fireman. Mom got there 30 seconds before me so they passed him off to her first. (Um, Mom... I love you, but I GOTS to call you out, drive slower next time so Mommy gets first cuddle during future emergency response sitches. Love you mean it)

He had this big bandaid on his head and was wearing purple medic gloves and was crying so hard. I grabbed him and gave him my best effort at Momma comfort.  Then as the lead medic was explaining that he'd be okay, just needed some stitches I tried my  best to give all the crew of our city's Finest (emphasis on the Finest--- where have all these hotties been all this time?! I need to send my single ladies to the Firehouse!) .....tried to give them all my  best most grateful smile. They were so so sweet giving him the "cool" purple gloves. While I signed the school's paperwork, Mom and Cade were whisked outside to tour the firetruck. Cade got to "drive" and they gave him a little gorilla beanie baby. Seriously. How freaking sweet is that? I wonder if they're always prepared with little toys in the firetruck. Cade clung to it for dear life and we STILL are holding onto those fabulous purple latex gloves.

Since his nose was swollen and he apparently had been gushing blood (as evidenced by the splatters on his clothes, legs, socks, and shoes) we decided to head to Children's Legacy ER. 

 There was a baby in the first intake room, Cade started to get all diva-ish and say "I no want a baby room!" And I assured him that he'd get a big boy room. He was pretty pumped to get to man the remote control for the tv all by himself. Each nurse was so sweet to us.

 They took off the bandaid and I got my first glimpse of his little head gouge. It was deep! (No bone or brains or anything, but deeper than I was expecting!)  They put on some numbing cream- no shots! bonus!-- and we had to wait 30 min  almost an hour for the doctor to come in to stitch him up. Cade was getting hungry (oh---and we had Devyn who is 13 months old and now 2 hours past her naptime) so Grammie checked out the nurse's station and they said he could have jello, juice, popsicle, or a slushie. Um, someone say "slushie"?!  Cade was on it. Devy got a white slushie and Cade got blue. If you ever have to choose, might we recommend blue. White tasted like kid medicine.

The nurse and doctor came in and prepped us for what would happen next. The nurse was so cute (and clever as hell!). She told Cade he'd need to take off his shirt so it wouldn't get wet while the doctor looked at his boo-boo. (Um, wth?) Then she said, "Oh we don't want you to get cold. Let me wrap you in this blanket." And he was putty in her hands. This boy loves a good blanket cuddle. She wrapped the sheet around him and tucked his arms in some sort of a swaddle. He laid down and they got to work. He barely whimpered a couple of times and I was right there by him as they worked. I got him talking about superheroes and -bam!- the kid was so excited to tell them all about the Superhero Squad and Avengers and how his buddy Liam was having a superhero party soon. He got so animated and tried to gesture that I had to hold him down and tell him to be still. I was amazed at his happy mood as the doctor calmly put four blue stitches in my baby boy.

 

We made it home and rested. Daddy brought him home hulk smash hands and a batman mask and cape. (Overboard? Perhaps, but the mask hid his boo-boo, so maybe it was genius...) Grandaddy saved the day and brought over some Chili's takeout for everyone. All I could do at the end of the day was get in the shower and cry. Cry for my baby's head, cry for the sweet teachers who had to deal with his gushing head and 9-1-1 on their first day of school, and cry because Thank God he was going to be okay.

 

Last week we went to the pediatrician to get his stitches out. He was a champ then too, just chatting away like nothing was happening. Oh, he loved his stitches. We called them his Blue Spiderman stitches and he was so proud of them.  His little buddy at school got a boo-boo on his knee that weekend so when they  went back to school on Monday he said that he and his pal were both brave boys and they aren't babies and no cry. Tough guy crew. I love it so much.

 

Momma lessons:

1. Dallas mommies - take your kids to Children's if you need medical attention. They are amazing.

2. Don't forget, the blue slushie is the best slushie.

3. Rub neosporin on a cut and as it heals massage it every day so it doesn't turn into a keloid (raised reddish scar). 

 

 

Thanks to all the friends who sent sweet Facebook messages, texts, and called to check on him. I love that we have such a sweet circle of friends and family there to support us!



Green

This week I'm linking up with The Paper Mama for the "Green" photo challenge.
It seemed like the perfect time to do it. Cade's favorite color is green (hence the lime Chucks), and I just love this pic from our summer trip to the Dallas Arboreteum. It's one of my favorite places in this city, and every time we go I love to see the kids so captivated by nature and so free.

This bridge was part of the Monet exhibit. So peaceful and so green. Doesn't it make you want to grab a blanket and Frappacino and just lay out  with a good book?

What it's like to have a 1 year old girl...

Oh baby sister girl.
It's your turn now!
I did not know how fast this last year would go.
I had an idea, but I really did. not. know.

From the minute you took your first breath and let out that powerful, girly cry I was relieved.
You were a girl.
One hundred percent.

What is it like to have a one year old baby girl?
You stand at your crib every morning. Bouncing and saying "hi".
Sometimes you have to cry because I'm not ready to wake up yet. Sorry.
You point to your door because your first mission is go find Cade.
He's your beacon in this world.
You adore him.

You like to wave to everyone.
Everywhere we go you wave and say "Hi!" in a squeaky little girly voice.
You even wave to the people in TV commercials.
You love your dog Izzy.
You are the only one in the family who never gets tired of playing fetch.
Only when you throw the ball in goes like 4 inches.
So Izzy tires of that first.
You love dogs so much you wave to them on tv too.
You kiss the baby gate box at Babies R Us because there was a doggy on it.
You love balls.
You love cars.
Cade bought you a pink minivan for your birthday.
You push your princesses in it.
You could play with your Fisher Price Little People castle all day.
You sing to Backstreet Boys and it makes Mommy so happy!
Cade told us to "Turn it down", but we didn't.

You hold onto my hands and power walk.
When I say "Daddy's home!" you power crawl to the back door with Izzy to greet him.
Seeing him makes you laugh and squeal his name and kick your legs.
You are a Daddy's girl.

Your first word was "Hi".
You are trying to walk.
But for now it's more fun to take one step and then fall down and laugh at yourself.
You always have two bruises on your forehead from bumping into things.
When I tell you "no-no" you look at me and smile.
You like to splash in Izzy's water dish and eat her dog food.
You love to climb.
Last week I found you standing on the toilet seat trying to look out the window.
You scared me to death and made me laugh at the same time.
Your Grammie calls you a Pistol.

You scrunch your nose and close your eyes and give a big "ha-ha" when you're being naughty.
You could eat all day long.
You adore ice cream and frozen yogurt.
You love the bath tub.
When I rock you to bed and give your your bottle you stop.
Your strum your lips to make the silly noise you like.
Then you giggle and close your eyes.
Thank God you are a good sleeper.
(Most of the time.)
You are still a little mystery.
You still are mostly dreams of pigtails, dance classes, and pedicures.
I can't wait to continue to discover all that is Devyn.

My dreams.
My daughter.

 

What It's Like to Have a 3 year old Boy...

 

There was a time when we could not imagine our baby boy walking.
Had no idea what the sound of his voice would be like.
Or what types of things he would grow to love.

What is it like to have a 3 year old boy?
Lots of talk about Spiderman.
Sound effects of shooting webs and fighting bad guys.
All........Day.........Long.
Asking us "Who is that superguy?"
Not eating meals, instead trying to negotiate for his favorite snacks.
Spiderman Cheez-Its. Marshmallows. Grapes popsicles (frozen grapes). Chocy Milk. Popcorn.
Jumping up and down and flapping his arms when the popcorn pops.
Asking for his shows on the "teesee".
Jumping off the couch.
Army crawling on the floor.
Dinosaur stomping to bed.
Hiding.
Wanting to be covered by three of his thickest baby blankets at night.
Building tents from blankets to watch movies.
Bringing every stuffed animal from his room under the tent to watch the movie together.
Superhero Squad. Batman. Spectacular Spiderman.
And then today, Carebears.
Getting out of bed 2 times each night to go potty.
Getting out of bed one more time because he just needs one more hug.
The big fat bottom lip sticking out when he's in trouble.
Telling him not to smile and then getting the cutest case of the giggles.
Telling me I'm pretty when I'm doing my makeup.
Hugging my legs just because.
Running ahead of me in the mall then turning around and sprinting back to me with open arms and sweeping him up for a huge spin and hug.
Always making sure he gets kissed and hugged goodnight.
Buying "Monster Spray" at Bath and Body Works and getting two squirts each night: one under the bed and one in the closet.
Asking me if he can help me clean when I'm wiping down counters or dusting.
Asking for "A big chocy milk like you" and putting his hands up real high.
Seeing a cool place on tv or the computer and telling me, "I want to go there."
Putting on his Spiderman mask and shirt and telling me, "No worry. Spiderman Cade here to protect  you."

Always taking care of his dog Izzy.
Running to the hearth to protect his baby sister from falling down.
Introducing himself to strangers as "Cade Lamb, Big Brother"
Telling me "I love you too Mommy" when he catches me smiling at him.
Saying he wants to grow up to be Daddy.

My heart.
My son.

 

Cosmic fun at Cosmic Jump

A couple of weeks ago we met up with our cousin Michael and Aunt Kelly to play at Cosmic Jump in Allen. It's a smaller version of Jump Street, which was perfect for the littles and even fun for the big kids because there were less summer crowds.  Cosmic Jump has lots of huge trampolines for kids to run back and forth on and attempt tricks. For $8 for 2 hours (they don't check the time) it's a good time. They also have a dodgeball court on trampolines which looked like so much fun! If I wasn't trying to chase down my lightning fast crawling one year old I would have jumped right in and hopefully not gotten my booty kicked by a bunch of preteens.

Sometimes the only way to get Cade to look at the camera is to have him yell or roar.

They have an area for the little kids too! Cade and Devyn loved the inflatable slide. I can't believe Devyn practically conquered the stairs up this bad boy all by herself.

Running up the walls was perfect for the boy who fancies himself Spiderman. The big kids could do flips and all sorts of crazy tricks. I'm thinking some of the kids with ADHD I grew up with would have LOVED this place! (Or rather the Mommies would have died to send them here!) Such a fun place for kids!

Lil Miss Seriouspants.

I have to give Cousin M a big shout out for being so great with Cadester. Despite the ten year (?) age difference he totally kept Cade entertained and they had a blast!  I also have to give a shout out to the sweet girl who was the "lifeguard" staff member for the kiddie trampolines. She let Devyn crawl/walk on the trampoline with me when there was nobody else on the trampolines. So sweet!

My rating of Cosmic Jump:
Overall for the 3 and under crowd JumpMania in Plano is a better value for your money.
Pre-walkers fare better with the toys and mini-jumpers in the toddler area at Jump Mania. If you have to bring a younger sibling it's a lot of supervising :) 
For the 4-7 year olds this is a good time & worth your money (and the drive). It's a good clean place and there are plenty of tables for parents to sit right by the trampolines and keep an eye on their kids. It's not too loud inside, which means you can carry on a nice convo with the other parents in your group while the kids play. Bonus!!
For the 8+ group this place is a great way to spend a few hours, knock off some energy and enjoy yourselves! I definitely think parents would feel better about dropping off their middle schoolers here due to the smaller venue and staff supervision. JumpStreet is just so huge it might scare off some of the parents from leaving their kids in the mega-crowds. They had a Kinect to play with and lots of trampolines, basketball court trampolines and dodgeball trampolines. The space and less crowds just seems safer.